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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. stock — goods
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. mark — a trace
  5. mark — a grade
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. field — for sport
  9. firm — a company
  10. cell — in biology
  11. cell — a phone
  12. field — farmland
  13. march — music
  14. field — a subject
  15. degree — from a university
  16. degree — an amount
  17. firm — decided
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. march — the month
  20. march — the month
  21. stock — shares
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. firm — steady

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com